The military strategy of separating fighting loads from existence loads

Countries & Cities · Published 12 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: To maximize combat effectiveness, a soldier's gear is divided into two distinct categories. One contains only the essentials for the immediate mission, while the other holds the supplies needed to survive. This strategic distinction is the core principle behind the US Army's ALICE system.

Created via the LINCLOE programme from 1967 until 1972, the All-purpose Lightweight Individual Carrying Equipment (ALICE) became United States Army Standard A on 17 January 1973. It was designed to replace previous iterations, specifically the M-1956 individual load-carrying equipment and the M-1967 modernized load-carrying equipment.

The system operates on a refined concept from the mid-1950s: the separation of fighting and existence loads. The fighting load consists of essential items—such as small arms, ammunition, and clothing—carried on a belt and suspenders to ensure the rifleman can accomplish their immediate mission on foot. The existence load includes items required for sustenance and protection that are not essential to the immediate combat task. To keep the soldier light, these existence items, such as field packs, are ideally transported by means other than man-carry.

While the ALICE system was a significant advancement, it was not without its challenges. In 1988, the military introduced the Individual Integrated Fighting System (IIFS) to complement the ALICE pack and suspenders, aiming to improve storage and center of gravity. Nevertheless, manufacturing defects hindered the IIFS, resulting in its limited deployment.

The various parts of the ALICE system have undergone several transformations. For example, the water canteen cover's designation changed from LC-1 to LC-2 in 1975 due to minor design changes, and the individual equipment suspenders were redesignated as LC-2 in 1991, though they underwent no major modifications other than a shift from brass to steel for certain hardware.

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